Eraser and retrieving device therefor



June 19, 193 A. K. GREENWOOD ERASER AND RETRIEVING DEVICE THEREFOR Filed Feb. 19, 1931 IIw Patented June 19, 1934 ERASER AND RETRIEVING DEVICE THEREFOR Alice K. Greenwood, Winchester, Mass.

Application February 19, 1931, Serial No. 516,903

8 Claims. (01. 120-36) This invention relates to eraser-holding and retrieving devices adapted to be applied as attachments to typewriters.

An eraser-holding and retrieving device is designed for the purpose of holding the eraser in a known location thereby to save the time of the operator that is usually spent in searching for a loose eraser.

The device usually includes a casing which is 10 attached to the typewriting machine, a flexible cord or cable carrying at one end the eraser, and

a spring-actuated cable reel carried by the casing which rotates to stress the spring as the cable is pulled out to permit the eraser to be brought into a position for use and which automatically rewinds the cable and returns the eraserinto position adjacent the casing when the tension on the cable is relieved.

It appears that, heretofore, the eraser-holding and retrieving devices have been so designed that they could be applied only to one particular part of the typewriter machine having a convenient screw; or an attaching hole had to be drilled into the frame of the machine. These methods of attachment are objectionable in that either the eraser is so held that it overlies the keyboard and thus is in the way of the operative, or interferes to some degree with the free operation of a part of the machine, or requires the services of. a

person and tools not usually found in a. business office to attach the device and, in addition, may

mar the appearance of the machine and lessen its re-sale value. Furthermore, the typist usually has her own individual idea as to the best location for the eraser and, if the eraser can not be placed in a good location that is suitable to her, she will neglect to use it.

An object of the invention is the provision of an eraser-holding and retrieving device that can be applied by the typist toany part of the typewriting machine that she considers the most con venient, and the position of which can be altered as often as may be desirable, if some selected position is found, upon trial, not to be suitably convenient.

A further object of the invention is the provision of attaching and supporting means for the device which can not mar or injure the finished surface of the machine.

Another object is the provision of a device of the type described having attaching means which permits its attachment directly to a flat smooth surface in a permanent, and yet readily detach- 5 able manner and without damage to the surface.

The heretofore proposed eraser-holding and retrieving devices usually have had a rigid connection with the machine, so that, if the flexible cord or cable is pulled out suddenly to its full extent, as is quite often the case when the typist 00 is in a hurry, severe strain is put upon the cable, so that it will part, thus rendering the device useless, it usually being beyond the skill of the typist to renew a broken cable.

Consequently, a further object of this invention is the provision of an eraser-holding and retrieving device which has a resilient and yielding, as contrasted with a rigid and unyielding, connection with the typewriting machine or other support, which connection is arranged to hold the casing of the device in a normal position and to yield when undue tension is placed on the cable in any direction whereby to prevent the breaking, of the cable and to return the casing to its normal position when the pull on the fully-extended cable is removed. The connection is also suchthat it has a disengageable engagement with the typewriting machine so that, if the pull on the cable is highly excessive, the casing will become detached from the machine, thus to prevent the 30 breaking of the cable. The connection is also such that, if the casing becomes detached from the machine, it can be re-attached thereto immediately by the typist.

Heretofore, the retrieving spring associated with the cable reel of the eraser-holding and releasing devices usually has exerted a continuous tension on the eraser, when it is in use, which makes the free use of the eraser awkward and un-- natural or, if the cable is slack, a button on the reel casing must be depressed to cause the reel to re-wind to take up the cable. This necessitates. an especial operation on the part ofthe typist and so slows up its speed. Furthermore, the depressing of the button is usually required to be performed by the hand that holds the eraser, so that the cable is caused to loop and may become caught about a part of the machine, and broken, when the reel suddenly takes up the slack cable.

It is an object of the present invention to provide mechanism so arranged as to hold the reel from re-winding when the cable is drawn out, whereby the cable is slack and the eraser is free. from any pull thereon and so can be used in a nat- 10 ural manner, the mechanism also being so ar-. ranged that a momentary outward pull or twitch on the cable releases the reel so that it can rotate and draw in the slack cable. Asa consequence, the typist has only to give the cable a twitch and 110 then drop it to cause it to be retrieved, without having to move the hand to the reel-casing.

The eraser is usually detachably connected to the outer end of the cable by a special connection so that a worn eraser can be removed and replaced by an unused one. Considerable strain is placed upon the connecting means and if it breaks or wears and is of uncommon construction it can not be repaired by the typist and thus the device must be discarded.

It is an object of this invention to provide a detachable connecting member between the eraser and the chain, which connecting member almost inevitably can be found in every office, for use for other purposes, so that the typist has on hand and can immediately and easily renew a connecting member upon need.

A further object of the invention is the provision of an eraser-holding and retrieving device that is small and compact and neat in appearance. I

In carrying out my invention, I provide a small cylindrical reel-enclosing casing of short axial I extent and a flexible and resilient suction cup which constitutes the resilient supporting means for the casing and also the means by which the casing is attached detachably to any desired supporting surface of the typewriting machine.

It is a further object of the invention to provide effective connecting means between the suction cup and the casing to connect both coaxially.

A yet further object of the invention is generally to improve the construction of eraser-holding and retrieving devices.

Fig. 1 is aside elevation of the invention.

Fig. 2 is an exploded sectional View of the cable-retrieving and casing-holding device.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the cup-retaining ring.

Fig. 4 is an elevation of the outer face of the back plate of the cable casing.

Fig. 5 is a sectional elevation of the back plate with the suction cup and ring.

' the two parts of the casing in engagement.

Fig. 6 is a sectional detail of the eraser and its connection with the cable.

Fig. 7 is a perspective view illustrating the man ner of attaching the device to a typewriting machine.

As here shown, the eraser supporting and retrieving device includes the reel enclosing casing 20, the resilient suction cup 22 which holds the casing resiliently to the frame of the typewriting machine, the extensible flexible cable 24 and the eraser 26 carried detachably by the end of the cable. The reel enclosing casing is composed of two casing sections of which the section 28' constitutes the reel support and the section 30 constitutes a cover.

. flange and the free edge of the cylindrical wall with a peripheral ledge 38 which constitutes a seat over which the free circular edge 40 of the cover section 30 is adapted to be received. Said cover section 30 is also essentially cylindrical and has the somewhat crowned outer wall 42 and the generally cylindrical side wall 44. Said side wall is provided with a pair of opposed ears 46 which are adapted to enter opposed notches 48 in the flange 36 of the other casing section and be reflexed downwardly over said flange to maintain A the cable reel.

supporting stud shaft 50 for the cable reel is carried co-axially by the rear wall 32 of the casing section 28 and extends through an opening therein and is riveted rigidly to the wall. Said shaft is located within the chamber formed by the cylindrical wall 34 and extends outwardly therebeyond and has the semi-cylindrical end section 52 which cooperates with a reel-locking device presently to be described to hold the reel at times against rewinding. A cup-shaped member 54 having axially-extended, peripherally-spaced arms 56 is carried by the inner face of the wall 32 and is secured fixedly thereto in surrounding relation with the shaft 50 by being clamped between said wall and an outstanding flange 57 of said shaft. Said cup-shaped member constitutes means to hold the free or inner end of the reel winding spring fixed to the casing.

The reel 58 consists of complemental discoidal sections 60 and 62. The section 66 has a radial wall 64 and, integral therewith, an outer cylindrical wall 66 on which the cable is wound and which has at one edge a continuous outstanding flange or wall 68 which is inclined slightly inwardly toward the cable space. The section 62 consists of a flat radial wall 70, a cylindrical wall 72, and an outstanding flange or wall '74. The two walls 64 and 70 are secured together in abutting relation by ears '76 which are struck out from the wall 64 and extend through apertures in the wall 70 and overlie said wall. Thus, the two outstanding Walls 68 and 74 are connected in spaced opposing relation to form a continuous peripheral space or groove '78 in which the cable is adapted to be wound. The reel is provided with an axle hub 86 which is journalled on the shaft 50 within said spring supporting member 56.

A cable-retrieving spring 82 consisting of'a large number of convolutions of a thin flat resilient ribbon is located within the cylindrical wall 66 and has its outer end fixed thereto. The

inner end is provided with a hook 84 which is looped about one of the teeth56 of the spring supporting member 54. The spring is normally placed under tension when the cable is entirely wound upon the reel and the eraser is drawn against the enclosing casing so that upon withdrawing the cable, the spring is placed under additional tension and so can retrieve the cable by rotating the reel in the opposite direction when the pull on the cable is released and the reel is free to rotate.

The cable 24 preferably is composed of a chain having metal links which are adapted to stretch considerably before they break, if an unusual strain is placed on the chain, thus to minimize the danger of breaking the chain. The inner end of the chain is anchored to an eye 86 which extends through an aperture in the wall 72 of The outstanding ends 88 of the edge are disposed against the inner face of said wall 72 and are held in place by a cover disc 90 which has an inturned cylindrical outer wall 92 that fits snugly by its own resiliency against the face of the inner wall '72. Said cover disc is provided with an axially located outstanding projection 94 that is adapted to engage the inner face of the wall 42 of the cover 36 so as to hold the reel against undue axial movementv in the direction of said cover.

Means are provided normally to hold the reel against rewinding after a length of the cable has been withdrawn from the casing. Said means includes a latch member 96 which is located within the cylindrical wall 72 of the reel and is freely pivoted on a struck-out ear 98 of the wall 70 and has a notch 100 which is adapted to overlie and ordinarily to engage the semi-cylindrical end 52 of the shaft 50. The arrangement is such that the reel can rotate in a direction to let out the cable Without the latch being in holding engagement with the shaft. When, however, the cable is held stationary and the reel is in the proper position, the latch engages the semicylindrical end of the shaft and thus holds the reel against rewinding. To release the latch it is suflicient merely to twitch the cable, or to pull it slightly out and therefor to release it. The reel then rewincls and the centrifugal force acting on the latch holds it outwardly away from effective engagement with the shaft.

The rubber suction cup 22 which serves to attach the reel casing'detachably and to support it resiliently on any desirable surface of the typewriting machine consists of the spheroidal cup member 102 which has the flexible side wall 104 which bounds the concavity 106 therein. The cup has an axially disposed attaching neck 108 that is provided with an enlarged head 110 at its end and provides an annular peripheral channel 112 between it and the cup in which channel the cup-attaching member is received. The cupattaching member includes a ferrule having a cylindrical side wall 114 and a cylindrical circular end wall 116 which extends inwardly from one end of said side wall and has a circular opening 118 therein. Said end wall 116 is adapted to be received in the annular channel 112 of the vacuum cup and the neck 108 is adapted to be located in the opening 118, the head 110 of the cup being located within the side wall 114. The head 110 is yielding and resilient and so can be placed in the aforesaid relation by forcing it through the opening 118. The forward end of the wall 114 is provided with two diametricallyopposed and axially-extended ears 120 which are located in the middle of the spaces 122 between the confronting ends of the cylindrical side walls, and are extended through diametrically-opposed slots or apertures 123 formed in the end or back wall 32 of the casing section 28. Said wall is provided with struck out bosses 124 in the bottom walls of which said slots are located, thereby forming interior recesses 126 which are disposed below the inner face of said wall 32. The outer ends of said ears 120 are flexed over the inner wall of said bosses whereby to secure the ferrule and its vacuum cup securely to the casing section; and the reflexed ears lie in said recesses 126 preferably wholly below the inner face of the wall 32 so as to be free from engagement with the reel. The bosses 124 are located in the spaces 122 between the confronting ends of the cylindrical side wall of the ferrule, so that the free edge of the side wall bears directly upon the rear face of the back plate.

The eraser 22 which is attached to the free end of the cable 24 can be of any desirable shape, although usually it will be in the form of a circular disc having an eyelet 128 in the middle thereof and providing a passage 130 through the eraser. The cable and the eraser are connected detachably together by a metal fastener which is in use in practicaly every office so that if the fastener becomes broken or lost it can readily be replaced immediately by the typist without any special skill on her part, and also without rendering the device unuseable for any protracted length of time. The fastener also permits the eraser to swivel on the cable. The connecting member constitutes a paper fastener, known as the McGill fastener, which consists of a head 134 and a pair of flexible prongs 136. The prongs are extended through the passage in the eraser and through an eye or loop 132 at the end of the cable and are reflexed outwardly thereover while the head overlies the other side of the eraser thus securely yet' detachably connecting the cable and eraser together. V

The device can be applied to any suitable smooth surface, as to the frame of the typewriting machine A, without the necessity for any skill on the part of the typist. It is merely necessary to moisten the inner surface of the vacuum cup and to press it against the part of the device to whichit is to be attached whereupon the device will venient she can remove the cup'and attach it to the machine in another location until by trial she finds the location from her experience that best suits her tastes and manner of working. Thus she is not limited to one particular location of the machine. Furthermore, different machines have differently designed frames so that the same location may not be avaifable on different types of machines. In addition, typewriter desks or tables are of various constructions so that while one type of table may permit attachment of the device in a certain location another type of desk may necessitate a different location for the device.

The rubber suction cup not only permits the attachment of the device to the machine without marring or in any way injuring the finished surface of the machine or desk and without drilling or removing parts of the machine, but it also provides a yielding and resilient support for the inner end of the cable and the reel to which it is attached. Thus, it tends to prevent the breaking of the cable for, if the typist, when in a hurry, pulls the cable out its full extent, the resilient neck of the cup will permit the casing to yield and thus ordinarily will prevent the snapping of the cable. If the amount of yield that is permitted by the suction cup is not sufficient to relieve the strain on the cable, the cup may break its attachment to the machine and thus the device will come oil? and release the strain on the cable. The chain also is adapted to stretch to some extent upon undue tension thereon and also to relieve the strain on the cable and prevent breaking thereof.

I claim:

1. In an eraser holder for typewriting machines including a cable-retrieving reel, an eraser-carrying cable wound thereon, the combination therewith of an enclosing and supporting casing for said reel having a wall provided with a socket, and a suction cup having a resilient neck retained in said socket, said suction cup constituting a supporting member for the holder which detachably attaches the holder to the machine.

2. In an eraser holder for typewriting machines including a cable-retrieving reel, an eraser-carrying cable wound thereon, the combination therewith of a casing for said reel having a socket provided with a reduced opening, and a suction cup having a compressible foot which is larger than If the cup should; in time,

Nil

said opening and is located in said'socket, said suction cup constituting a supporting member for the holder which detachably attaches the holder to the machine.

3. In an eraser holder-for typewriting machines including a cable-retrieving reel, an eraser-carrying cable wound thereon, thecombination therewith of an'enclosing and supporting casing for said reel having a socketand an annular flange which overlies said socket, and an attaching and supporting member for the holder, including a said'groove' and having means attaching it to said. iwall.

5. In an eraser holder for typewriting machines including a cable-retrieving reel, an eraser-carrying cable wound thereon, the combination therewith of, an enclosing and supporting casing for said reel having an end wall and an attaching and supporting member for the holder including a suction cup having a neck provided with an annular groove therein, a retaining collar enclosing said neck having an annularv flange located in :said groove and having ears which are extended through openings in said wall on opposite sides of the axis of said reel and are reflexed over the inner face of said wall, whereby to connect said collar, with said casing.

6.- In an eraser holder for typewriting machines including a cable-retrieving reel, an erasercarrying cable wound thereon, the combination therewithof an enclosing and supporting casing for said reel having an end wall provided with a stud which constitutes a support on which said reel is rotatable, and an attaching and supporting member for the holder including a resilient suction cup, and means securing said cup to said wall coaxially with said stud.

'7. In an eraser holder. for typewriting machines including a cable-retrieving reel, an eraser-carrying cable wound thereon, an enclosing and supporting casing for said reel having an end wall provided with a stud which constitutes a support on which said reel is rotatable, the combination therewith of an attaching and supporting member for the holder including a resilient suction cup having a neck provided with an annular groove, a collar in which said neck is located having an annular flange retained in said groove and cars which are extended through said end wall on opposite sides of said stud and are fixed to said wall.

8. In an eraser holder for typewriting machines including a cable-retrieving reel, an eraser-carrying cable wound thereon, an enclosing and supporting casing for said reel having an end wall, the combination therewith of an attaching and supporting member for the holder including a resilient suction cup, and means connected with said end wall which engages said neck intermediate its ends and connects it with said wall.

. ALICE K. GREENWOOD. 

